Virtual meetings make life easier for many people. However, they also come with challenges that must be overcome if they are to be successful. If participants aren’t engaged, they may be distracted and never receive the message the meeting was established to share. With a few tips, any person can make their remote meeting engaging.
Connect with Participants
Virtual meetings lack personal connections, but they don’t have to. There are several ways to connect with participants during a virtual meeting. One way is to ask everyone to grab a physical object that is important to them. Have them share these objects in the meeting and explain why they are special.
Another option involves typing a sentence in the shared chat box and asking everyone to finish the sentence. Repeat the process with several sentences and review the answers to see common patterns.
Finally, the group moderator can ask everyone to share a segment from a song they love. Allow everyone participating to hear the segment and discuss what they love about it. Host this meeting with Epiphan Connect, and completing these tasks will be effortless thanks to the features offered.
Set Ground Rules for Speakers
Many people remain silent when participating in office meetings. Fading into the background is more manageable when these meetings are held virtually. One problem often seen with virtual meetings is people talking over one another or interrupting.
The meeting host must set ground rules for speakers to reduce the risk of this happening and ensure everyone gets the opportunity to share. There are several ways to ensure everyone gets a turn to speak.
Consider using the raised hand icon or another icon in the chat box. When it appears, the moderator recognizes the individual. They can unmute themselves and share their thoughts. Set a time limit for the individual to speak before moving on to the next person. The moderator might also choose to have everyone speak, setting aside a specific time limit for them to do so.
A third option involves letting people share their thoughts in the chat box. The moderator may have someone monitoring this box and bringing their attention to points critical to the meeting.
One Pizza Rule
Jeff Bezos established a rule many years ago to ensure the productivity of his meetings. If he couldn’t feed the participants with two pizzas, there were too many attendees, and he needed to downsize. Otherwise, little would be accomplished in the meeting. Hosts should use the same principle when holding virtual meetings but cut it down to one pizza.
There would be too many attendees if the number of participants in the virtual meeting could not be fed by one pizza at an in-person meeting. Keeping a virtual meeting small allows participants to connect and get things accomplished. Otherwise, the meeting may be a lecture rather than a working session with engaged participants.
Virtual meetings can be productive, engaging, and valuable when handled properly. The host must know how to overcome challenges. The tips outlined above are only the beginning.
Consider bringing in a co-host and always have a plan so the meeting doesn’t go off track. However, be prepared for chaos. Everyone has seen the video of the virtual meeting interrupted by a dog. Everyone got off track in that meeting, and the host handled it perfectly.
By preparing for any eventuality, a host can have a meeting that meets their goals while engaging the participants and leaving them looking forward to the next collaboration. That’s when the virtual meeting is a complete success.
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